STaRR Training
Overview
With support from the Victorian Department of Health, Western Alliance is delighted to provide our centrepiece research capability building program, known as the STaRR (Supporting Translation of Research in Rural and Regional areas) Program.
The STaRR Program was informed by a comprehensive scoping exercise, which included a systematic scoping review of the research education literature and the Victorian Rural/Regional Research Training Needs Project. The STaRR Program builds on the support from our Research Translation Coordinator positions and includes a range of translation-focussed research training activities and resources, as well as support for organisation research planning.
STaRR training supports three key groups:
- Emerging health practitioner researchers in health organisations across our region
- Research mentors
- Health organisation managers and leaders
Click here to meet the STaRR Class of 2025!
2026 STaRR Emerging Researcher Mentored Training Program: EOIs opening soon
STaRR training aims to provide health staff with the foundational research skills needed to develop a research translation-focused project (i.e., a project that will develop or use existing evidence to underpin change in practice or policy). STaRR participants will receive mentoring support and access to resources to assist them. We will pair STaRR participants with a research mentor prior to the workshops or they can nominate their own mentor.
There will be an opportunity for STaRR participants to apply for grant funding to progress their research idea or translate the findings into practice post completion of the training course.
Who can participate?
All staff working at Western Alliance member health organisations (Barwon Health, Colac Area Health, East Grampians Health Service, Grampians Health, Maryborough District Health Service, Portland District Health, South West Healthcare, Western District Health Service, Western Victoria PHN) are invited to apply for the STaRR program. We encourage those with limited or no prior research experience to apply.
Western Alliance covers the cost of the training program, so it is free to participate.
Workshops overview
STaRR training comprises three workshops facilitated via a mix of in-person and online sessions. Approximately 2-4 hours of project work is required each week for 10 weeks (approx.) between the first, second, and third workshops to develop a research protocol or proposal.
The workshops are underpinned by the principles of research translation and cover the following broad topics:
- General introduction to research
- Common data collection techniques
- Developing a researchable question
- Introduction to data analysis
- Health service ethics and governance
- Research dissemination and impact
- Introduction to research methods
- Consumer and stakeholder engagement
- Introduction to a research translation framework
- Working with your mentor
STaRR participants’ manager or team leader will be invited to specific parts of the workshops relevant to their role.
Expressions of Interest
Expressions of interest for the 2026 STaRR Training program will open on 18 May 2026.
Please contact your local Research Translation Coordinator or Alison Buccheri via starrsupport@deakin.edu.au for more information about the STaRR program.
Read more about STaRR below:
STaRR Emerging Researcher Training
STaRR training aims to provide health staff with the foundational research skills needed to develop a research translation-focused project (i.e., a project that will develop or use existing evidence to underpin change in practice or policy). STaRR participants will receive mentoring support and access to resources to assist them. We will pair STaRR participants with a research mentor prior to the workshops or they can nominate their own mentor.
There will be an opportunity for STaRR participants to apply for grant funding to progress their research idea or translate the findings into practice post completion of the training course.
Who can participate?
All staff working at Western Alliance member health organisations (Barwon Health, Colac Area Health, East Grampians Health Service, Grampians Health, Maryborough District Health Service, Portland District Health, South West Healthcare, Western District Health Service, Western Victoria PHN) are invited to apply for the STaRR program. We encourage those with limited or no prior research experience to apply.
Western Alliance covers the cost of the training program, so it is free to participate.
Workshops overview
STaRR training comprises three workshops facilitated via a mix of in-person and online sessions. Approximately 2-4 hours of project work is required each week for 10 weeks (approx.) between the first, second, and third workshops to develop a research protocol or proposal.
The workshops are underpinned by the principles of research translation and cover the following broad topics:
- General introduction to research
- Common data collection techniques
- Developing a researchable question
- Introduction to data analysis
- Health service ethics and governance
- Research dissemination and impact
- Introduction to research methods Consumer and stakeholder engagement
- Introduction to a research translation framework Working with your mentor
STaRR participants’ manager or team leader will be invited to specific parts of the workshops relevant to their role.
Expressions of Interest
Expressions of interest for the 2026 STaRR Training program open in May 2026.
Please contact your local Research Translation Coordinator or Alison Buccheri via starrsupport@deakin.edu.au for more information about the STaRR program.
STaRRlite is:
- A half-day online research workshop open to staff working at a Western Alliance member health organisation*
- Designed for health practitioners (including clinicians, program staff & managers) with little or no previous research or quality improvement experience
- Ideal for practitioners who want to gain foundational knowledge & skills to begin health research or quality improvement projects, or leaders who want to support their team member(s) to do so
Cost: Free (Western Alliance covers the workshop costs)
More info: Click here or Contact Alison Buccheri via starrsupport@deakin.edu.au
*Barwon Health, Colac Area Health, East Grampians Health Service, Grampians Health, Maryborough District Health Service, Portland District Health, South West Healthcare, Western District Health Service, Western Victoria Primary Health Network
Supporting research and translating capacity and capability-building using evidence-informed approaches
STaRR is an evidence-informed research capability building program. We continue to explore the most effective ways to build research capacity and capability through our research.
You can read more about the evidence we have generated through developing, delivering and evaluating the STaRR Program by following links to our peer-reviewed research articles below.
- King, O., West, E., Lee, S., Glenister, K., Quilliam, C., Wong Shee, A., & Beks, H. (2022). Research education and training for nurses and allied health professionals: a systematic scoping review. BMC Medical Education, 22(1), 385. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12909-022-03406-7
- King, O. A., Sayner, A., Beauchamp, A., Hitch, D., Aras, D., & Shee, A. W. (2023). Translating research into rural health practice: a qualitative study of perceived capability-building needs. Rural and Remote Health, 23(4), 1-10. https://search.informit.org/doi/abs/10.3316/informit.T2024042400006590952533059
- King, O. A., Sayner, A. M., Beauchamp, A., West, E., Aras, D., Hitch, D., & Wong Shee, A. (2023). Research translation mentoring for emerging clinician researchers in rural and regional health settings: a qualitative study. BMC Medical Education, 23(1), 817. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12909-023-04786-0
- King, O., West, E., Alston, L., Beks, H., Callisaya, M., Huggins, C. E., … & Wong Shee, A. (2024). Models and approaches for building knowledge translation capacity and capability in health services: a scoping review. Implementation Science, 19(1), 7. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13012-024-01336-0
- Quilliam, C., Wong Shee, A., Corboy, D., Glenister, K., King, O., Mc Namara, K., … & McKinstry, C. (2023). Design and implementation characteristics of research training for rural health professionals: a qualitative descriptive study. BMC Medical Education, 23(1), 200. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12909-023-04169-5
- Wong Shee, A., Quilliam, C., Corboy, D., Glenister, K., McKinstry, C., Beauchamp, A., … & Mc Namara, K. (2022). What shapes research and research capacity building in rural health services? Context matters. Australian Journal of Rural Health, 30(3), 410-421. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/ajr.12852
